What is the difference between a security audit and testing?
In a security audit, the goal is to report whether the system under review meets the defined requirements. From the audit perspective, the result is binary: either the system complies or it does not. If shortcomings are found, they are fixed.
A security audit therefore answers the question of whether the system meets defined — and often external — security requirements. These requirements are usually checklists that do not take into account the unique characteristics of the system. In other words, they are the same for everyone.
Security testing, by contrast, is not driven by predefined requirements. It is exploratory, adaptive, and above all creative. Instead of following a checklist, the focus is on finding vulnerabilities in the system and evaluating the risks they pose to the business.
The distinction is clear: both assess the security of a technical system, but auditing requires requirements while testing does not.
In short: auditing is about compliance, testing is about risk management. A system can also be assessed from both perspectives at once. In that case, testing helps identify and manage the residual risks not covered by external requirements.
Read more in our blog: Security audit or penetration test — which do you need?
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